Pin dispensing device



- Dec. 2, 1958 w. T, JOHNSON 7 2,862,644

PIN DISPENSING DEVICE Filed Feb. 11, 1955 15 INVENTOR.

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cover shown partly broken away; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section showing the position United States Patent 2,862,644 ,PIN DISPENSING DEVICE v 'Walter T. Johnson, Rosemont, Pa. Application February 11, 1955, Serial No. 487,666

' 1 Claim. 01. 221-268) This invention relates to a device for dispensing pins and, particularly, to a pin dispenser which has a storage compartment for holding a supply of pins with means for rapidly dispensing the pins in succession, positioned and held for inserting the dispensed pin into the object to be pinned.

Various devices have been heretofore proposed for providing a supply of pins for use in pinning operations where a number of pins are required. Such devices have, for the most part, adopted the broad principle of the pin cushion in which the individual pin about to be used is manually picked from the device by the user and then inserted into the material being pinned. The present invention seeks to overcome the inefficiencies arising from the use of devices in which the individual pin must be manually selected and handled by the user. A further object of the present invention is to provide a pin dispensing device whichcan be operated with one hand, thus avoiding the necessity of the use of two hands in selecting and positioning the pin to be used. A still further object of the present invention is to provide a pin' dispenser which the user can hold and operate in one hand, and which will present a succession of pins held in a position to be inserted in the material to be pinned and, at the same time, be capable of being withdrawn from the dispenser whenever the user desires. Further objects and advantages will be apparent from the description which follows, having particular reference to a preferred embodiment of the invention as shown in the drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the pin dispenser of the present invention manually held in a position of normal use with a pin in the ejected position and with the slide of the dispenser and a pin prior to being dispensed;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of the pin dispenser of the present invention showing a pin in position as dispensed;

Fig. 4 is a front end view taken as indicated by the arrows IV-IV in Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a cross-section taken as indicated by the arrows V-V in Fig. 2; and

Fig. 6 is a cross-section taken as indicated by the arrows VI-VI in Fig. 2.

In the drawings, there is shown a body member 10 having a size and configuration suitable for convenient manual use, as shown in Fig. 1. Formed within the body member 10, there is a storage compartment 11 which has a length suitable for receiving pins of the type shown at 12 in Figs. 1, 2, 3 and Fig. 6. The storage compartment 11 is formed of vertical walls 13 and inwardly sloping side walls 14 at the lower portion. As shown in Fig. 5, the sloping walls 14 do not quite meet at the lower end and there is thus formed a slot 15 which is smaller than the diameter of the pins to be dispensed. Along the outer sides of the body 10 toward the top thereof, there are two grooves 16 and 17 within which 1 I lCC.

along one side of the body 10 is a groove 19 within which there. is positioned'the dispenser slide 20. As shown in Fig. 6, the dispenser slide 20 is bent at an angle to conform with the side and bottom of body 10 and is provided with an upwardly extending portion 21 which is positioned within the slot 15 and which extends somewhat into the lower portion of the: storage compartment 11. At its other extremity, the dispenser slide 20 is providedwith an angled extension 22 which fits within the dispenser slide groove 19. The outer surface of the dispenser slide 20 is provided with a knurled or friction surface 23, so that the dispenser slide 20 can be easily moved by the thumb or finger of the user as shown in Fig.v 1. At the forward end of the body 10, there is provided. a nose portion 24 which has a sloped and rounded configuration terminating at the dispensing hole 25 which passes completely through the nose portion to the compartment 11, with the passageway opening at the compartment 11 being slightly above the slot 15.

The pins which are used in operating the device of the present invention are of the type shown at 12 in Figs. 2 and 3, in which the usual broad head is omitted and a knurled head portion is provided as shown at 26. Alternatively,the portion of the pin which is shown as being knurled may be dipped in a suitable coating material such as wax or a plastic material which will adhere to the pin.

In using the present invention, the compartment 11 is first loaded with a supply of pins of the type shown at 12. This is accomplished by sliding the cover 18 forward in the grooves 16 and 17, and then inserting a supply of pins with their points forward. After the pins have been loaded into the compartment 11, the slide cover 18 is returned to a position covering the top opening of the compartment 11. The dispenser slide 20 is then moved rearward to the full limit of its travel, as shown in Fig. 2. In this position, the lowermost pin 12 will assume a position within the opening top of the slot 15, and its head portion will lie in the path of the upwardly extending portion 21 of the dispenser slide 20. The slide 20 is then moved forwardly of the body 10, and the upwardly extending portion 21 carries with it the pin 12 which is thus pushed through the hole 25 in the nose portion. While this forward motion of the slide 20 and the pin 12 is being carried out, the nose portion 24 is brought to a position where it is desired to apply the pin, and the pinning operation is carried out while the pin is being ejected. Since any backward motion of the pin 12 is resisted by the forward pressure on the dispenser slide 20, the pin passes into the material being pinned and remains in such material on withdrawing of the body 10, since the frictional hold of the material on the pin is much greater than the slide friction between the pin and the smooth hole 25. By repeating the operation, a succession of pins may be made available in a similar way by merely sliding the dispenser 20 to its rearmost position and then sliding it forward again.

While I have disclosed a preferred embodiment of the present invention, it will be understood that various modifications, including the use of equivalent means, are included within the broad outlines of the present invention, and it is intended that such modification shall be included within the definition of the present nvention as set forth in the appended claim. 1

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

In a pin dispensing device, the combination of a body member, said body member having a rounded nose element formed at the forward end thereof and a downwardly oblique guide slot formed longitudinally in a wall thereof; a storage compartment within said body member having side walls which slope inwardly at the storagecompartmentthrough the forward end of said body member with openings at said forward end and at the storage compartment end; a slot formed in the central lower portion of the body member and opening centrally intothe lowermost part of said'storage compartment and in alignment with said passageway, said slot forming an unobstructed opening through the bottom of'said' body member throughout the length of said storage compartment and having a verticle height substantially greater than said passageway; and a pin dispensing element located outside said body member and having an upwardly projecting portion positioned within said slot and extending'into'the lower portion ofpsaid storage compartment and a downwardly projecting'portion entending into the aforementioned oblique guide slot-formed in; the wall of said body member, said dispensing elernent further including a vertical portion mounted substantially against one outer wall of said body member and a horizontally projecting portion 4 mounted substantially against the outer bottom surface of the body member.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 229,101 Dangerfield June 22, 1880 744,561 Kerley Nov. 17, 1903 950,815 Burr ,3 Mar. 1, 1910 1,024,392 Branyan Apr. 23, 1912 1,028,106 Forsyth June 4, 1912 1,031,625, Dashner July 2, 1912 1,042,419 Farrar Oct. 29, 1912 1,462,056 West July 17, 1923 2,215,008 Kuhnl Sept. 17, 1940 2,277,996 Sharp Mar. 31, 1942 2,330,806 Benjamin Oct. 5, 1943 2,698,110 Di Renna Dec. 28, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS 124,803 Switzerland Mar. 1,. 1928 

